Today I stopped by the Lafleche landfill (Pink-footed Goose site) to see what gulls were around. Numbers were very high for this far into January, likely because we have not had sustained cold weather yet. For gull aficionados, this is a great place to visit. Most of the gulls were heading out as I arrived at 2pm (someone was shooting in the dump) but I still managed to count 104 Glaucous Gulls, 46 Iceland Gulls, 1 Thayer's Gull, 5 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, 470 Great Black-backed Gulls and over 3000 Herrings Gulls. It is well worth a visit to see such a nice selection of gulls. The potential for a Slaty-back or other goodies is high with such a concentration. Hopefully others get out to browse through these birds in the next little while. It would be great to spend an entire day there to see what comes and goes. There are lots of raptors in the area if you get cold and need to drive around to warm up. I saw 8 Snowy Owls in a short drive as I was beating the hypothermia. If you have not been there, Lafleche is very exposed and windswept. An overcast day with low wind is optimal for viewing.
Lafleche landfill is near the intersection of highway 138 and Highway 417 - take the first road to the west south of the intersection. There is no access to the dump but the active area of the dump is visible from the entrance road and best looks at gulls were of a flock roosting in the adjacent field. Jeff -- Jeff Skevington, Research Scientist Canadian National Collection of Insects, Arachnids and Nematodes Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada 960 Carling Avenue, K.W. Neatby Building Ottawa, ON, K1A 0C6, Canada Phone: 613-759-1647 FAX: 613-759-1927 E-mail: [email protected] _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide
